The book that I chose for this assignment was, Het boek van PTT Telegrafie en Telefoni, designed by Piet Zwart. The first visual impression of this book I had was I noticed the strange graphics on the front and I was curious what the inside of the book looked like. Out of all the books for some reason I was most intrigued by this book’s interesting illustration style and the use of color. This book, published in 1938, is a paperback book that is fragile with age. The size, I believe, is a little smaller than 8.5 by 11 inches, or the size of letter paper. Any old book has a beautiful aged paper smell, however, what is so great about this book is the design technique and the visually engaging images. The many colorful illustrations, the different weights and sizes of type, and the overlapping of elements makes this book very interesting and exciting from beginning to end. No two pages are the same. There are many elements in each of the pages mail stamps, images overlayed in different colors, and two characters that are use throughout the book. The illustrations look as though they were hand drawn after the book was printed with colored pencil. However, the colored pencil was also printed because there was no waxy finish that occurs when one colors with colored pencil. This technique looked very interesting as it contrasts with the sharpness and thickness of the type on the page. Personally, I am a huge fan of book design, especially avant-garde and abstract designs that are almost more of a piece of art or composition than a page in a book. I appreciate the time and effort that went into the production of this book and I was interested to learn more about it as I completed this assignment.

The book Het boek van PTT Telegrafie en Telefoni, designed by Piet Zwart, is a children’s book of sorts that explained how the Dutch postal and telephone system worked. This book is in the special collections for a lot of reasons. Piet Zwart’s illustrations style is progressive and avant-garde, the typography is exploratory, and the book is very important to the history of graphic design. Piet Zwart is a constructivist designer and his work contributed to the movement of modern typography. His book, Het boek van PTT Telegrafie en Telefoni, is in the form of a children’s book explaining aspects of the Dutch Post, teaching children how to use the postal service. Het boek van PTT Telegrafie en Telefoni, is a great example of the beginning of more modern graphic design because the designer took the information about a postal service and translated it and communicated it visually to an audience, which is a huge part of what graphic design is today. Instead of simply translating the information, however, Zwart made interesting compositions that were irregular and he collaged his imagery with his text which contributed to the playful theme throughout his work. Piet Zwart knew who his audience was, children and carefully designed his work to meet their needs. The book is graphically strong with playful images that would teach the children the information along with giving them something interesting to look at. Also, the use of primary colors and the colored pencil techniques remind the readers of childhood because they mimic coloring book drawings and the colors of the alphabet building blocks I used to play with. Piet Zwart took complete advantage of the current printing technologies to produce this interesting, illustrative book. When I look at this book it almost seems more like a work of art because the way Zwart placed all the elements on the page is in an abstract non-traditional way, however, it is still successful because it is engaging for children that lose attention easily.

The book, Het boek van PTT Telegrafie en Telefoni, is connected in a way to the book Die Scheuche: Marchen, written by Kurt Schwitters because they are both children’s books. Die Scheuche: Marchen is a German children’s book that contains fairytales, grammar lessons, and religious text. However, Schwitters’ book, written before Zwart’s book, is much more simplistic and more consistent with the typography and the illustrations throughout the book. When Schwitters designed his book the content that he was trying to communicate is more related to school subjects, whereas, Zwart’s book is very specifically about the Dutch postal service. What is interesting to think about is how the content relates to the images being used in each book. The children’s book by Schwitters contains fairytales, stories, and other interesting content, however, the text being used is all one size, there are only two different colors being used, and the images are very simplistic and geometric. On the other hand, the book by Piet Zwart, has very detailed images that interact with the text and create very interesting compositions, however, the text is about something specific and maybe a little uninteresting to most children.

When comparing these two books, one can also consider the technology available at the time they were both produced and the budget that was available to each designer. Schwitters’ German fairytale book contains mainly two colors, red and blue, and the typography is all one size and weight. The book, Het boek van PTT Telegrafie en Telefoni, was created later so the printing technology might have improved by the time it was printed. Zwart’s book is a great example of the style of artwork that was beginning to happen within the avant-garde movement. The relationship this book has, to the other children’s books during and after its time strengthens its importance in the history of graphic design.

In conclusion, this children’s book by Piet Zwart is a key piece in the avant-garde movement and although it took influence from those before it, it also has influence design for years to come. The unique combination of text sizes and weights, next to the combination of colored prints, colored pencil drawings, and overlayed images makes allows me to appreciate the history of graphic design, modern typography, and the avant-garde style.